Upcoming in the next few months are a very good selection of movies on video, streaming and VOD. Genre’s include romance, children’s/family animation, horror, drama, comedy, action films and others on DVD/Blu-ray/VOD/Digital HD, 4K, streaming, etc. The releases are of titles that were in theaters, on TV series as well as direct to video. We will be updating the column so please frequent our Video Release page. The films may also be available on VOD or just Digital HD so look for the download information inside the video release box. NOTE: The titles listed below may also be available in theaters depending on availability so check your local listings.
We will be reviewing select titles so keep in touch at www.acedmagazine.com to get opinions from our writing staff. You might also discover a gem that you didn’t know existed or a hilarious comedy to brighten your day. Aced Magazine selects titles sent in from studios, but does not support or receive any monetary return for the listing or reviewing them. We remain totally independent and reserve the right to choose at our discretion.
JULY 2020
July 3, 2020
The Outpost- VOD
THE OUTPOST a tiny unit of U.S. soldiers, alone at the remote Combat Outpost Keating, located deep in the valley of three mountains in Afghanistan, battles to defend against an overwhelming force of Taliban fighters in a coordinated attack. The Battle of Kamdesh, as it was known, was the bloodiest American engagement of the Afghan War in 2009 and Bravo Troop 3-61 CAV became the most decorated units of the 19-year conflict.
Suzi Q- Blu-ray/DVD, VOD
SUZI Q is the definitive, unexpurgated story of the girl from Detroit City who redefined the role and image of women in rock’n’roll, when she broke through around the world in 1973. Singer, songwriter, bass player, author, actress, radio presenter, poet, still touring and recording music – there is only one Suzi Q.
John Lewis: Good Trouble- VOD
JOHN LEWIS: GOOD TROUBLE Using interviews and rare archival footage, JOHN LEWIS: GOOD TROUBLE chronicles Lewis’ 60-plus years of social activism and legislative action on civil rights, voting rights, gun control, health-care reform and immigration. Using present-day interviews with Lewis, now 80 years old, Porter explores his childhood experiences, his inspiring family and his fateful meeting with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in 1957. In addition to her interviews with Lewis and his family, Porter’s primarily cinéma verité film also includes interviews with political leaders, Congressional colleagues, and other people who figure prominently in his life.
The Truth-VOD
THE TRUTH a moving portrait of family dynamics in THE TRUTH. Fabienne (Catherine Deneuve) is an aging French movie star who, despite her momentary lapses in memory, remains a venerable force to be reckoned with. Upon the publication of her memoirs, her daughter Lumir (Juliette Binoche) returns to Paris from New York with her husband (Ethan Hawke) and their young daughter to commemorate its release. A sharp and funny battle of wits ensues between the mother-daughter duo, as Lumir takes issue with Fabienne’s rose-colored version of the past.
Born to Play- ESPN
BORN TO PLAY an inspiring film that follows a season with the Boston Renegades, a women’s tackle football team on the path to redemption after going undefeated but losing their championship the previous year.
Mr. Jones- VOD
MR. JONES set on the eve of WWII, sees Hitler’s rise to power and Stalin’s Soviet propaganda machine pushing their “utopia” to the Western world. Meanwhile an ambitious young journalist, Gareth Jones (Norton) travels to Moscow to uncover the truth behind the propaganda, but then gets a tip that could expose an international conspiracy, one that could cost him and his informant their lives. Jones goes on a life-or-death journey to uncover the truth behind the façade that would later inspire George Orwell’s seminal book Animal Farm.
July 7, 2020
The Medicine- VOD, Digital
THE MEDICINE reveals the hidden mysteries of one of nature’s most powerful and controversial healing remedies: Ayahuasca. Increasingly popular in the West, Ayahuasca is both a tradition in Amazonian shamanism and a promising new focus of mental health research. The Medicine introduces spiritual leader Taita Juanito Guillermo Chindoy Chindoy, both a teacher and student of the sacred plant in the Colombian Amazon, where Ayahuasca is known as Yagé.
I Used to Go Here- VOD
I USED TO GO HERE Following the lackluster launch of her debut novel, 35-year-old writer Kate Conklin (Gillian Jacobs) receives a welcome invitation from her former professor and old crush (Jemaine Clement) to speak at her alma mater. With her book tour cancelled, and her ego deflated, Kate hopes that returning to her old college as a published author will give her the morale boost she sorely needs. Instead, she falls into a comical regression—from misadventures with eccentric twenty-year olds to feelings of jealousy toward her former professor’s new favorite student.
Hope Gap- DVD
HOPE GAP The intimate, intense and loving story of HOPE GAP charts the life of Grace (Annette Bening), shocked to learn her husband (Bill Nighy) is leaving her for another after 29 years of marriage, and the ensuing emotional fallout the dissolution has on their only grown son (Josh O’Connor). Unraveled and feeling displaced in her small seaside town, Grace ultimately regains her footing and discovers a new, powerful voice.
Inferno of Torture- Blu-ray
INFERNO OF TORTURE Exploitation legend Teruo Ishii (Horrors of Malformed Men, Orgies of Edo) delivers one of his most extreme visions of violent eroticism in this, the sixth in his abnormal love series. Tattoos and torture await women forced into servitude in Ishii’s Inferno of Torture.
Zombie for Sale- Blu-ray
ZOMBIE FOR SALE An infectiously funny slice of modern Korean cinema where Train to Busan, The Quiet Family and Warm Bodies collide to create a memorable rom-zom-com from first time director Lee Min-jae.
The Prince- DVD, VOD
THE PRINCE an explosive prison drama set in a repressive 1970s Chilean prison. During a night of heavy drinking, 20-year-old Jaime unaccountably stabs his best friend. He is sent to jail for murder and there, alone and afraid, he comes under the protection of a tough older inmate known as “The Stallion.” The unlikely pair begin a clandestine romance but violent power struggles inside the penitentiary threaten their bond.
The Medicine- Digital and On Demand
THE MEDICINE Explore the hidden mysteries of Ayahuasca, one of nature’s most powerful and controversial remedies, and it’s cultural and scientific significance. How did this Amazonian tradition become a promising new focus of mental health research?
Where Sleeping Dogs Lie
WHERE SLEEPING DOGS LIE A dark dramatic comedy that follows two brothers and a childhood friend through one long night where they find themselves in a tragic twist of events during a botched robbery.
Blood and Money- Blu-ray/DVD
BLOOD AND MONEY A retired veteran (Tom Berenger) hunting in the Allagash backcountry of Maine discovers a dead woman with a duffle bag full of money. He soon finds himself in a web of deceit and murder.
Proximity- DVD
PROXIMITY A young NASA JPL scientist is abducted by extraterrestrials but when no one believes his story he becomes obsessed with finding proof which leads him on a journey of discovery.
Murdoch Mysteries, Season 13 Dvd/Blu-Ray) (Acorn Tv)
MURDOCH MYSTERIES, SEASON 13 Detective Murdoch (Yannick Bisson) and his team continue to tackle Edwardian Toronto’s toughest mysteries, from the serious and historic to the comic and unusual. As Murdoch harbors suspicions about coroner Violet Hart (Shanice Banton), a former Pinkerton agent (Marc Senior) joins the station, and Crabtree (Jonny Harris) learns more about his unknown family.
July 8, 2020
Terrence Mcnally: Every Act of Life- Streaming on PBS thru Aug 31, 2020
TERRENCE MCNALLY: EVERY ACT OF LIFE Celebrate the Life Of Award-Winning Playwright Terrence McNally an American Masters documentary now through August 31st. The film traces McNally’s life – from escaping his troubled home in Corpus Christi, Texas to becoming one of America’s most groundbreaking and honored playwrights. The film includes interviews with actors Nathan Lane, Angela Lansbury, Rita Moreno, Chita Rivera, F. Murray Abraham, Audra Macdonald, Edie Falco, John Slattery, and Billy Porter, to name a few, discussing McNally’s remarkable legacy. McNally sadly passed away from COVID-19 complications on March 24, 2020.
July 10, 2020
Relic- VOD
RELIC When elderly mother Edna (Robyn Nevin) inexplicably vanishes, her daughter Kay (Emily Mortimer) and granddaughter Sam (Bella Heathcote) rush to their family’s decaying country home, finding clues of her increasing dementia scattered around the house in her absence. After Edna returns just as mysteriously as she disappeared, Kay’s concern that her mother seems unwilling or unable to say where she’s been clashes with Sam’s unabashed enthusiasm to have her grandma back. As Edna’s behavior turns increasingly volatile, both begin to sense that an insidious presence in the house might be taking control of her
The Tobacconist- Virtual Cinema and Select Theaters
THE TOBACCONIST Seventeen-year-old Franz journeys to Vienna to apprentice at a tobacco shop. There he meets Sigmund Freud (Bruno Ganz), a regular customer, and over time the two very different men form a singular friendship. When Franz falls desperately in love with the music-hall dancer Anezka, he seeks advice from the renowned psychoanalyst, who admits that the female sex is as big a mystery to him as it is to Franz. As political and social conditions in Austria dramatically worsen with the Nazis’ arrival in Vienna,
Archive- VOD, Digital
ARCHIVE 2038: George Almore is working on a true human-equivalent AI. His latest prototype is almost ready. This sensitive phase is also the riskiest. Especially as he has a goal that must be hidden at all costs: being reunited with his dead wife.
Olympia- Virtual Theater
OLYMPIA this sublimely intimate, fly-on-the-wall documentary tells a heart-wrenching story of a woman becoming her own woman, on her own terms, to assert a gigantic creative force into the world. Rebelling against her old world, panty-sniffing, suspicious Greek mother to assert her strong sexual drive, fighting the feeling she was “too ethnic” amid the Boston Brahmin at BU, and starting her own theatre company in New Jersey, instead of waiting for the phone to ring, Olympia Dukakis models how to live life with blazing courage. Throughout an engrossing story that seamlessly blends past and present, she opens her heart and exposes her truest self to the audience. The raw honesty with which Olympia leads us into the core of her self is what makes this film luminary.
Sometimes Always Never- VOD
SOMETIMES ALWAYS NEVER Alan (Bill Nighy) is a stylish tailor with moves as sharp as his suits. He has spent years searching tirelessly for his missing son Michael who stormed out over a game of Scrabble. With a body to identify and his family torn apart, Alan must repair the relationship with his youngest son Peter (Sam Riley) and solve the mystery of an online player who he thinks could be Michael, so he can finally move on and reunite his family.
Volition- Digital and other platforms, some theaters
VOLITION a time-bending cerebral science-fiction thriller where a man afflicted with clairvoyance tries to change his fate when a series of events leads to a vision of his own imminent murder.
The Old Guard- Streaming Netflix
THE OLD GUARD Led by a warrior named Andy (Charlize Theron), a covert group of tight-knit mercenaries with a mysterious inability to die have fought to protect the mortal world for centuries. But when the team is recruited to take on an emergency mission and their extraordinary abilities are suddenly exposed, it’s up to Andy and Nile (KiKi Layne), the newest soldier to join their ranks, to help the group eliminate the threat of those who seek to replicate and monetize their power by any means necessary.
Guest of Honor- Virtual Cinema
GUEST OF HONOR im (David Thewlis) and his daughter Veronica (Laysla De Oliveira), a high school music teacher, attempt to unravel their complicated histories and intertwined secrets in the latest film from Academy Award nominee Atom Egoyan (The Sweet Hereafter), which weaves through time exploring perception and penance, memory and forgiveness. A hoax instigated by an aggressive school bus driver (Rossif Sutherland) goes very wrong. Accused of abusing her position of authority with 17-year-old Clive (Alexandre Bourgeois) and another student, Veronica is imprisoned.
July 14, 2020
The Red Shadows (Dvd/Blu-Ray) (Sundance Now)
THE RED SHADOWS Five-year-old Clara Garnier is kidnapped. Her abductors are demanding a very high ransom in exchange for her release. But the day of the exchange ends in a bloodbath; Clara’s mother is killed, and the child vanishes. Is she dead or alive? 25 years later, Clara’s older sister Aurore, a police officer investigating a murder, uncovers clues to prove her sister is still alive.
Ride With Norman Reedus, Season 1 (DVD/Blu-ray) (AMC)
RIDE WITH NORMAN REEDUS, SEASON 1 The Walking Dead star and motorcycle enthusiast Norman Reedus hits the open road to explore local biker culture and celebrate the best and brightest collectors, mechanics and craftsmen around the world. Reedus is joined by friends, local chopper fanatics, fellow actors Peter Fonda and Balthazar Getty, and director Robert Rodriguez as they journey to custom bike shops, tattoo parlors, collectors’ warehouses and roadside restaurants and bars, with plenty of time for unplanned detours and tire changes.
Pride and Prejudice (1940)- Blu-ray
PRIDE AND PREJUDICE (1940) Like the arrows she launches at an archery target during an elegant lawn party, Elizabeth Bennet’s wit is pointed and unerring. “If you want to be really refined, you have to be dead,” she says, skewering the imperious airs of her hosts. Jane Austen’s timeless 1813 novel of unlikely romance is richly adapted in this lavish Academy Award® winner.* Greer Garson portrays spirited Elizabeth, one of five Bennet sisters hoping for matrimony. Laurence Olivier plays Darcy, whose arrival at a nearby estate sets maiden hearts aflutter.
Hiroshima- Blu-ray
HIROSHIMA In 1953 a powerful evocation of the devastation wrought by the world’s first deployment of the atomic bomb and its aftermath, based on the written eye-witness accounts of its child survivors compiled by Dr. Arata Osada for the 1951 book Children Of The A Bomb: Testament Of The Boys And Girls Of Hiroshima.
Nothing Stays the Same- DVD, EST, VOD
NOTHING STAYS THE SAME celebrates the last 30 years of live music in Austin, Texas, while also examining the challenges faced by musicians and music venues in one of the fastest-growing and most popular cities in the country, all through the lens of the legendary Saxon Pub. With iconic venues closing each year due to rising rents and property taxes in the Live Music Capital of the World, the writing is on the wall for the Saxon Pub, a mainstay in live music since 1990. Soon being forced to a new space – akin to closure for most clubs – its owner, its regulars and staff and its beloved musicians such as local luminaries
July 17, 2020
Easy Does It- VOD and Select Theaters
EASY DOES IT Best buds, Jack and Scottie (Ben Matheny, Assassination Nation, American Horror Story and Matthew Martinez, NCIS: New Orleans, Daddy’s Home) are going nowhere fast in their crumbling, Mississippi hometown. They have big dreams and no prospects. When the friends learn of hidden loot in sunny California, they decide to take their shot at the American Dream.
Dirt Music- VOD
DIRT MUSIC One hazy night she sees the lone figure of Lu Fox (Garrett Hedlund) appear in the mists of the bay. A long time ago he was a dirt musician, but now he survives as a poacher – an unwise choice given Jim’s iron-grip on the local fishing trade. It’s a tale of love and redemption, set against the awe-inspiring backdrop of the Australian West.
Father Soldier Son- Streaming on Netflix
FATHER SOLDIER SON follows a former platoon sergeant and his two young sons over almost a decade, chronicling his return home after a serious combat injury in Afghanistan.
Ghosts of War- Virtual Cinema
GHOSTS OF WAR Five battle-hardened American soldiers are assigned to hold a French Chateau near the end of World War II. Formerly occupied by the Nazi high command, this unexpected respite quickly descends into madness when they encounter a supernatural enemy far more terrifying than anything seen on the battlefield.
Sunlit Night- VOD
SUNLIT NIGHT
The Painted Bird- VOD
THE PAINTED BIRD is a meticulous 35mm black and white evocation of wild, primitive Eastern Europe at the bloody close of World War II. The film follows the journey of The Boy, entrusted by his persecuted parents to an elderly foster mother. The old woman soon dies and the Boy is on his own, wandering through the countryside, from village to village, farmhouse to farmhouse. As he struggles for survival, The Boy suffers through extraordinary brutality meted out by the ignorant, superstitious peasants and he witnesses the terrifying violence of the efficient, ruthless soldiers, both Russian and German. In a defining scene, one of the peasants shows The Boy the flight of a captive bird, whom the man has painted and then released back into its own flock.
Kaye Ballard – The Show Goes On!- Virtual Theater
KAYE BALLARD – THE SHOW GOES ON! is a wondrous reflection on the achievements of “the greatest star you hardly knew.” From big bands to Broadway, radio to recordings, and television to the big screen, Kaye Ballard did it all in a career that spanned eight decades. Delightful moments are captured in rare archival footage and recent interviews with Kaye’s long-time pals Ann-Margret, Carol Burnett, Harold Prince, Carol Channing, Michael Feinstein, Rex Reed, and others, as well as with Kaye herself. From Cleveland to Broadway to Hollywood and a hundred stops in between, actress-singer-comedian Kaye Ballard has traveled the world of show business like no other performer.
July 21, 2020
Secret Weapon- DVD
SECRET WEAPON In the depths of World War 2, a powerful secret Soviet rocket launcher is accidentally left during an unexpected retreat of Russian troops. Lethal in the hands of the Germans, a special operations unit is sent to rescue the launcher, to ensure Germans can never find and use it to win the war. Against all odds, the unit must fight to retrieve the secret weapon, no matter what it takes.
The hunt is on…
Behind Her Faith- (DVD) (UMC)
BEHIND HER FAITH (DVD) (UMC) Each episode centers on one subject as they open up to viewers about their greatest achievements and biggest successes as well as their toughest disappointments and most heartbreaking moments: sharing their life lessons and triumphs along the way.
Girl Crazy (1943)- Blu-ray
GIRL CRAZY (1943) is one of the most buoyant tunefests ever put on-screen. Rich kid Danny Churchill (Mickey Rooney) has a taste for wine, women and song, but not for higher education. So his father ships him to an all-male college out West where there’s not supposed to be a female for miles. But before Danny arrives, he spies a pair of legs extending out from under a stalled roadster. They belong to the dean’s granddaughter, Ginger Gray (Judy Garland), who is more interested in keeping the financially strapped college open than falling for Danny’s romantic line. At least at first.
Well Groomed- DVD, VOD
WELL GROOMED chronicles a year in the visually stunning world of competitive and creative dog grooming and follows the lives of a group of dog lovers whose dedication to transforming their beloved poodles into living sculptures is bold, imaginative and eye-opening. The Documentary effervescently and poignantly explores an America not often portrayed in cinema.
The Room- Blu-ray, DVD, VOD, Digital
THE ROOM when Kate and Matt leave the city to move into an old house, they discover a secret hidden room that has the extraordinary power to materialize anything they wish for. Their new life becomes a true fairytale. Yet beneath this apparent state of bliss, something darker lurks: some wishes can have dire consequences.
Life is a Long Quiet River- Blu-ray
LIFE IS A LONG QUIET RIVER The radiantly bourgeois Le Quesnoys with their immaculate children and perfect manners and the grubby, disreputable Groseilles are thrown together in absurd chaos by an act of revenge as they discover that twelve years prior their babies were switched at birth.
Bloodstone- Blu-ray
BLOODSTONE a priceless stolen ruby, accidentally ends up in the possession of American newlyweds Sandy and Stephanie. Now, their honeymoon in India is interrupted as they become the target of international fence Van Hoeven. When Van Hoeven kidnaps Stephanie and ransoms her for the jewel, Sandy joins forces with cabby and dormant stunt-driver Shyam Sabu to rescue his young bride.
You Don’t Nomi- Blu-ray, DVD
YOU DON’T NOMI a chorus of film critics and fervent devotees explore the complicated afterlife of 1995s biggest film flop, Paul Verhoeven’s Showgirls, from disastrous release to cult adoration and extraordinary redemption. The films features Adam Nayman (Vice Guide to Film), April Kidwell (I, Nomi) and Peaches Christ (Milk).
Deadtectives- DVD
DEADTECTIVES a team of reality TV ghost hunters experience true paranormal activity for the first time while filming a make-or-break episode in the most haunted mansion in Mexico. Facing cancellation on the one hand and supernatural entities on the other, the team must figure out a way to bust the ghosts, deliver the episode of a lifetime, and escape with their lives intact.
The Grand Unified Theory Of Howard Bloom- VOD, Digital
THE GRAND UNIFIED THEORY OF HOWARD BLOOM After illness strikes down a legendary publicist, he reinvents himself as an author of books on humanity’s role in the cosmos. Now in his 70s, he prepares an unfathomably long masterwork to unify his theories, while considering his legacy.
Airplane!: 40th Anniversary Edit- Blu-ray, Blu-ray Steelbook
AIRPLANE! Robert Hays stars as an ex-?ghter pilot forced to take over the controls of an airliner when the ?ight crew succumbs to food poisoning. The all-star cast also includes Julie Hagerty, Robert Stack, Lloyd Bridges, Peter Graves, Leslie Nielsen, and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. The outrageous comedy spoof skewers airplane disaster flicks, religious zealots, television commercials…and everything else in its path.
Survive the Night- Blu-ray/DVD
SURVIVE THE NIGHT After two brothers commit a robbery that goes wrong, one of them, Mathias, is mortally wounded, forcing sibling Jamie to stalk a trauma doctor named Rich (Chad Michael Murray, “One Tree Hill”) from the hospital to his home. While holding Rich’s wife and daughter hostage, Jamie forces Rich to operate on Mathias. For the family to survive the night, Rich must team up with his estranged tough-as-nails father, retired sheri? Frank (Willis), in order to gain the upper hand and turn the tables on the criminals.
July 23, 2020
Resistance-DVD
RESISTANCE a true story of heroism in which a group of Girls and Boy Scouts created a network that ended up saving the lives of around ten thousand orphans whose parents had been killed by the Nazis in the Second World War. At the center of the movie we find an aspiring Jewish actor whose desperate need to help the children lead him into the world of pantomime, and who will later and, thanks to this experience, become the legendary French mime Marcel Marceau.
July 24, 2020
Radioactive- Streaming on Amazon Prime
RADIOACTIVE true-story of Marie Skłodowska Curie and her ground-breaking scientific achievements that revolutionized medicine with her discovery of radium and polonium, ultimately changing the face of science forever. Marie was the first female to win the Nobel Prize and the first person in history to win the esteemed award twice.
Fisherman’s Friends- VOD, Digital
FISHERMAN’S FRIENDS A fast living, cynical London music executive (Daniel Mays) heads to a remote Cornish village on a stag weekend where he’s pranked by his boss (Noel Clarke) into trying to sign a group of shanty singing fishermen (led by James Purefoy). He becomes the ultimate “fish out of water” as he struggles to gain the respect or enthusiasm of the unlikely boy band and their families (including Tuppence Middleton) who value friendship and community over fame and fortune.
Helmut Newton: The Bad and the Beautiful- Virtual Cinemas
HELMUT NEWTON: THE BAD AND THE BEAUTIFUL Helmut Newton made a name for himself exploring and elevating the female form through his striking, often nude images. Newton imbued fashion imagery with narrative depth and gave context to his subjects by creating stylized, dreamlike scenes that were disturbing, ambiguous, and bold. Critics questioned whether the women in his photos were treated as powerful icons or as submissive erotic objects – or as both. The film is an eye-popping romp through five decades filled with treasure troves of rare home videos, behind-the-scenes archival footage, and countless, strikingly beautiful photographs that track his beginnings in Berlin to eventual cult status.
Amulet-VOD
AMULET Following an accident that leaves him homeless in London, former soldier Tomaz is brought to the rotting home of Magda, a lonely woman in desperate need of help as she looks after her dying mother. Though at first resistant, Magda eventually welcomes him into their lives and allows him to help her care for them. But as he worms his way into their routine and begins to fall for Magda, Tomaz starts to notice strange, unexplainable, and ugly phenomena. Something seems very wrong with the mysterious old woman who never leaves the top floor, and Magda may in fact be enslaved to do her otherworldly bidding.
The Kissing Booth 2- Streaming Netflix
THE KISSING BOOTH 2 Elle Evans (Joey King) just had the most romantic summer of her life with her reformed bad-boy boyfriend Noah Flynn (Jacob Elordi). But now Noah is off to Harvard, and Elle heads back to high school for her senior year. She’ll have to juggle a long-distance relationship, getting into her dream college with her best friend Lee (Joel Courtney), and the complications brought on by a close friendship with a handsome, charismatic new classmate named Marco (Taylor Perez). When Noah grows close to a seemingly-perfect college girl (Maisie Richardson-Sellers), Elle will have to decide how much she trusts him and to whom her heart truly belongs
The Rental- VOD
THE RENTAL Two couples looking to celebrate their seed money from a new business venture, embark on a weekend getaway to a seemingly perfect house they’ve booked online. But what begins as a festive weekend for the four close friends turns into something far more sinister as secrets they’ve kept from each other are exposed and paranoia grows that they may not be alone. Co-written by Dave Franco and Joe Swanberg,
July 28, 2020
James Cameron’s Story Of Science Fiction – Blu-ray/DVD
JAMES CAMERON’S STORY OF SCIENCE FICTION is a uniquely intimate look at science fiction’s roots, futuristic vision and our fascination with its ideas through interviews by James Cameron with A-list storytellers, stars and other whose careers have defined the field, including Steven Spielberg, George Lucas, Ridley Scott, Christopher Nolan, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Will Smith and Sigourney Weaver, among many others. Cameron takes us on a journey of discovery and exploration, helping us understand where science fiction’s ideas came from – and where they’re taking us.
Deadwater Fell (Acorn TV Original) (DVD/Blu-ray)
DEADWATER FELL This four-part psychological mystery drama explores the cause and aftermath of a horrific crime in a small Scottish community. When a seemingly perfect and happy family is murdered by someone they know and trust, those closest to the family begin to question everything they thought they knew about their friends.
Million Dollar Mermaid (1952)- Blu-ray
MILLION DOLLAR MERMAID (1952) James Sullivan (Victor Mature) works the carny circuit, promoting the likes of a boxing kangaroo or grappling bear. Then the wheeler-dealer meets a million-dollar idea: beautiful swimming champ Annette Kellerman (Esther Williams). She’ll churn through a River Thames PR stunt. Cause a bathing-suit scandal among Boston bluebloods. Headline New York’s Hippodrome. And become a Hollywood swimsation as cameras roll and Rin Tin Tin looks on. Glamorous, amphibious Esther Williams portrays the real-life aquatic star in a splashy biopic costarring Victor Mature and loaded with stunning spectacle (including a must-see Busby Berkeley masterwork)
Accidental Studio- Blu-ray, DVD
ACCIDENTAL STUDIO charts the early years of HandMade Films seen through the eyes of the filmmakers, key personnel, and the man who started it all: former Beatle George Harrison. With unreleased archive interviews and footage with Harrison, exclusive interviews with Michael Palin, Terry Gilliam, Richard E. Grant, Neil Jordan, Ray Cooper and unseen interviews with Bob Hoskins, the film explores HandMade’s baptism by fire, the risk it took in producing uniquely crafted intelligent films and the stories that grew up around it.
Dead Dicks- Blu-ray, DVD, VOD
DEAD DICKS
When Becky, a young nursing student receives a series of panicked messages from her older brother Richie, she rushes over to check on him. Following a seemingly successful suicide attempt, Richie, who suffers from mental illness, is not only very much alive but also what appears to be his own dead body. When Becca gets to his apartment, they find several more dead versions of Richie and together, try to figure out how and why he keeps being reborn each time he takes his own life
Nose to Tail- Digital and On Demand
NOSE TO TAIL Over one increasingly frantic day and night, a talented but abrasive chef struggles with personal demons and the pressures of running a high-end restaurant as he tries to save the business he’s sacrificed everything in his life to build.
July 31, 2020
Marley- Virtuous Cinema, Select Theaters
MARLEY Born into poverty in rural Jamaica, Bob Marley became a prophet for the world’s oppressed, preaching peace, love, and understanding with a universal language – song. Now in 2020, the Marley family has rolled out a yearlong MARLEY75
The Secret: Dare to Dream- PVOD
THE SECRET: DARE TO DREAM centers around Miranda Wells (Katie Holmes), a hard-working young widow struggling to raise three children on her own. A powerful storm brings a devastating challenge and a mysterious man, Bray Johnson (Josh Lucas), into her life. In just a few short days, Bray’s presence re-ignites the family’s spirit, but he carries a secret—and that secret could change everything.
Rebuilding Paradise- TBD
REBUILDING PARADISE On the morning of Nov. 8, 2018, a devastating firestorm engulfed the picturesque city of Paradise, California. By the time the Camp Fire was extinguished, it had killed 85 people, displaced 50,000 residents and destroyed 95% of local structures. It was the deadliest U.S. fire in 100 years — and the worst ever in California’s history.
Summerland- VOD, Digital and Select Theaters
SUMMERLAND Alice is a reclusive writer, resigned to a solitary life on the seaside cliffs of Southern England while World War II rages across the channel. When she opens her front door one day to find she’s to adopt a young London evacuee named Frank, she’s resistant. It’s not long, however, before the two realize they have more in common in their pasts than Alice had assumed.
AUGUST 2020
August 4, 2020
Liza, Liza Skies Are Grey?
LIZA, LIZA SKIES ARE GREY? After deciding they would be each other’s “first,” Liza (Mikey Madison) and Brett (Sean H. Scully), a young couple trying to figure out love and growing up in the summer of ‘66, take a motorcycle road trip up the California coast. With one last chance to live like there’s no tomorrow in a world filled with war, fear, and change, fate will offer them more than they ever expected to find on the warm and winding highway.
Dispatches From Elsewhere (DVD/Blu-ray) (AMC)
DISPATCHES FROM ELSEWHERE A series centered around four ordinary people who feel there is something missing in their lives; brought together by chance, they stumble into a puzzle hiding behind the veil of everyday life that opens their eyes to a new world of possibility.
Idiomatic, Series 1 (DVD) (Sundance Now)
IDIOMATIC, Series 1 Timely and hilarious, the 10-part series is a modern-day romantic comedy series that follows the life and times of an urban, bilingual, environmentally conscious progressive couple in their thirties
The Stand: How One Gesture Shook the World- VOD, Digital
THE STAND: HOW ONE GESTURE SHOOK THE WORLD is a revealing exploration into the circumstances that led runners Tommie Smith and John Carlos to that historic moment at the Mexico City Games, mining the great personal risks they took and the subsequent fallout they endured.
Satan’s Slaves-Blu-ray/DVD
SATAN’S SLAVES after Rini’s mother dies from a mysterious illness, her ghost begins to appear throughout the house. Terrorizing the family, she lurks the hallways and calls out to them at night. To protect her little brothers, Rini traces back the roots of the evil and discovers the horrifying truth. Their mother has made a deal with the devil, and she has not returned to visit…she wants to take one of them with her.
CHRSD- Digital and On Demand
CHRSD On the last night of her college freshman year, Izzy tries to lose her virginity with the help of her two best friends––but their only hope is getting into an exclusive, invite-only “Crush Party.”
Star Light- Digital and On Demand
STAR LIGHT A kind-hearted teenager, Dylan, attempts to save a runaway popstar, Bebe A. Love, from a threatening manager. Fearing for Bebe’s safety, Dylan seeks shelter at a friend’s house, turning a fun graduation party into a night of living hell.
August 7, 2020
She Dies Tomorrow- VOD (Select Drive-In Theaters July 31st)
SHE DIES TOMORROW a woman ravaged by the notion that she is going to die tomorrow sends her down a dizzying emotional spiral. When her skeptical friend, played by Jane Adams, discovers the feeling of imminent death is contagious, they both begin bizarre journeys through what might be the last day of their lives.
I Used to Go Here- VOD and Select Theaters
I USED TO GO HERE Following the lackluster launch of her debut novel, 35-year-old writer Kate Conklin (Gillian Jacobs) receives a welcome invitation from her former professor and old crush (Jemaine Clement) to speak at her alma mater. With her book tour cancelled, and her ego deflated, Kate hopes that returning to her old college as a published author will give her the morale boost she sorely needs.
Out Stealing Horses- VOD
OUT STEALING HORSES 67-year-old Trond (Stellan Skarsgård), lives in self-imposed isolation and looks forward to welcoming in the new millennium alone. As winter arrives he meets one of his few neighbors, Lars (Bjørn Floberg), and realizes he knew him back in the summer of 1948. 1948 – the year Trond turned 15. The summer Trond grew up.
The Tax Collector- VOD, Digital, Select Theaters
THE TAX COLLECTOR David (Bobby Soto) and Creeper (Shia LaBeouf), are “tax collectors” for the crime lord Wizard, collecting his cut from the profits of local gangs’ illicit dealings. But when Wizard’s old rival returns to Los Angeles from Mexico, the business is upended, and David finds himself desperate to protect what matters more to him than anything else: his family.
The Con- Virtual Cinema and August 21 on Digital
THE CON Patrick Lovell investigates what happened, beginning with personal stories — including the foreclosure of his own Utah home, and the suicide of a 91-year-old African American widow in Akron, Ohio — before zooming out to examine the corrupt systems that doomed the United States to government funded bailouts that would only perpetuate a predatory system. Lovell also looks back to when the government properly functioned for the people it represented by holding banks accountable during the Great Depression and rescuing the country from the S&L Crisis of the late 1980s. Through interviews with those inside the 2008 crisis — regulators, former officials, foreclosure victims, industry whistleblowers, and journalists
August 11, 2020
Gold Digger (DVD) (Acorn TV)
GOLD DIGGER On her 60th birthday, Julie (Emmy® winner Julia Ormond) hits it off with handsome young Benjamin (Ben Barnes). But their whirlwind romance is marred by the disapproval of Julia’s adult children. Does Benjamin truly lover her, or is he the gold digger her family believes him to be?
Playing For Keeps (DVD) (Sundance Now)
PLAYING FOR KEEPS A fresh, contemporary, and glamorous murder mystery set on the side lines of football, told from the unique perspective of the real power players: the women. It’s love, power, and status all the way—until the death of a team member adds investigation into the mix. This bold and brassy Australian series depicts the lives of the rich and famous, in a world full of lies, scandals, and possibly even murder.
Gripped: Climbing the Killer Pillar- VOD
GRIPPED: CLIMBING THE KILLER PILLAR a feature length rock climbing survival epic that takes place on the side of a 1000ft cliff. Set high in the Sierra Nevada mountains of California, Gripped follows the story of Rose, a gym climber from Los Angeles who falls for Bret, a rugged outdoorsman who gets the two in over their heads when they embark on the famous rock climbing route called “Killer Pillar”. Bret takes a huge fall and suffers a serious head injury and torn shoulder. With no way to retreat off the cliff, Rose is forced to take the lead and finish the 2000ft of climbing to the summit. However, Rose has very little experience with high alpine traditional climbing
August 12, 2020
Platonic – YouTube 10-episode series
PLATONIC Set in a memory of New York City just before the pandemic, the film follows Olive (a gay Brooklynite) and Billy (her straight best friend) as they look for love and document their search via voicemail messages to each other. This 10-episode series juxtaposes the radical intimacy and hazy boundaries of non-romantic relationships with the sexual fluidity and emotional ambiguity of modern dating.
August 14, 2020
The Silencing- VOD, Digital (Select Theaters)
THE SILENCING a reformed hunter (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau) and a sheriff (Annabelle Wallis) are caught in a deadly game of cat and mouse when they set out to track a killer who may have kidnapped the hunter’s daughter five years ago.
Underwraps- DVD
UNDERWRAPS Danny and older sister Eleanor fall into an adventure of a lifetime when Danny accidentally unleashes a centuries old curse involving mummies, phaoroahs and nefarious villains! When their archeologist parents go on an expedition to an ancient Pharoah’s last resting place, Danny sneaks into the tomb and finds a sacred amulet, which he takes home. When he accidentally breaks the amulet, all sorts of chaos follows,
August 18, 2020
Prevenge- Blu-ray, DVD, Digital
PREVENGE Ruth’s misanthropic unborn baby speaks to her from the womb, coaching her to lure and ultimately kill her unsuspecting victims. Struggling with her conscience, loneliness, and a strange strain of prepartum madness, Ruth must ultimately choose between redemption and destruction at the moment of motherhood.
Cursed Films- Blu-ray/DVD and Digital HD
CURSED FILMS is a five-part documentary series which explores the myths and legends behind some of Hollywood’s notoriously “cursed” horror film productions. From plane accidents and bombings during the making of The Omen, to the rumored use of real human skeletons on the set of Poltergeist, these stories are legendary amongst film fans and filmmakers alike. Were these films really cursed, as many believe, or just the victims of bad luck and bizarre circumstances?
Tracks- Digital and On Demand
TRACKS A young couple tries to save their failing relationship by inter-railing around Europe together. Things don’t quite go to plan and they find themselves in all sorts of awkward situations.
A Life Of Endless Summers: The Bruce Brown Story- Digital and On Demand
A LIFE OF ENDLESS SUMMERS: THE BRUCE BROWN STORY is an exclusive retrospective documentary on Bruce Brown’s life told by the one who knew him best, his son, Dana Brown. It’s a story of a man, a father, a husband, a filmmaker, a pioneer, a legend – A Life Well Lived.
August 21, 2020
The Pale Door- VOD, Digital and Select Theaters
THE PALE DOOR the Dalton gang finds shelter in a seemingly uninhabited ghost town after a train robbery goes south. Seeking help for their wounded leader, they are surprised to stumble upon a welcoming brothel in the town’s square. But the beautiful women who greet them are actually a coven of witches with very sinister plans for the unsuspecting outlaws – and the battle between good and evil is just beginning.
Chemical Hearts- Amazon Prime
CHEMICAL HEARTS Seventeen-year-old Henry Page (Austin Abrams) has never been in love. He fancies himself a romantic, but the kind of once-in-a-lifetime love he’s been hoping for just hasn’t happened yet. Then, on the first day of senior year, he meets transfer student Grace Town (Lili Reinhart) and it seems all that is about to change. When Grace and Henry are chosen to co-edit the school paper, he is immediately drawn to the mysterious newcomer. As he learns the heartbreaking secret that has changed her life, he finds himself falling in love with her — or at least the person he thinks she is.
TESLA- VOD
TESLA Brilliant, visionary Nikola Tesla (Ethan Hawke) fights an uphill battle to bring his revolutionary electrical system to fruition, then faces thornier challenges with his new system for worldwide wireless energy. The film tracks Tesla’s uneasy interactions with his fellow inventor Thomas Edison (Kyle MacLachlan) and his patron George Westinghouse (Jim Gaffigan). Another thread traces Tesla’s sidewinding courtship of financial titan J.P. Morgan (Donnie Keshawarz), whose daughter Anne (Eve Hewson) takes a more than casual interest in the inventor.
August 25, 2020
Hard Kill- VOD (Aug 21 Select Theaters)
HARD KILL When ex-Special Forces soldier Derek Miller takes an assignment protecting wealthy industrialist Donovan Chalmers, Miller and his team —tough and fiery Sasha, her world-weary brother Harrison, and quick-tempered wise-guy Dash —think it’s a simple paycheck job. But then they’re ambushed during a warehouse rescue, and are outgunned and outmanned by a team led by a merciless maniac from Miller’s past called The Pardoner.
Dead Still (DVD) (Acorn TV Original)
DEAD STILL Memorial photographer Brock Blennerhasset (Michael Smiley) makes a living out of photographing the dead in Victorian Ireland. When a series of murders threatens to sully Blennerhasset’s reputation, a tenacious detective drags him into an investigation of Dublin’s criminal underbelly.
SEPTEMBER 2020
September 1, 2020
Terrified- Blu-ray, DVD
TERRIFIED on an ordinary suburban street in Buenos Aires, voices are heard from kitchen sinks. Bodies are levitating. Evil is here. It is up to a doctor, her colleague, and an ex-cop to get to the bottom of this neighborhood nightmare.
Z – Blu-ray, DVD, Ditital, VOD
Z when Beth’s son brings home an imaginary friend named “Z,” she becomes concerned that he is falling too deep into a world of make believe. He starts to display extremely destructive behavior, blaming Z for all of his actions. But after he gets kicked out of school, Beth is forced to find a solution. She medicates her son, making him unable to see his imaginary companion. But now Beth sees Z…and he wants to be her friend.
Retaliation- Blu-ray, DVD
RETALIATION Malky, a demolition worker whose life receives a seismic shock when, out drinking with friends at a local pub, he sees a disturbing figure from his past: the man he holds responsible for a traumatic childhood incident. Fueled by anger, Malky sets out on a path of vengeance—and discovers that no one can escape the consequences of their sins in this taut thriller.
September 18, 2020
The Nest- Platform TBD
THE NEST Rory (Jude Law), an ambitious entrepreneur and former commodities broker, who persuades his American wife, Allison (Carrie Coon), and their children to leave the comforts of suburban America and return to his native England during the 1980s. Sensing opportunity, Rory rejoins his former firm and leases a centuries-old country manor, with grounds for Allison’s horses and plans to build a stable. Soon the promise of a lucrative new beginning starts to unravel, the couple have to face the unwelcome truths lying beneath the surface of their marriage.
Blackbird- VOD
BLACKBIRD Lily (Sarandon) has learned she has ALS, so she and her husband Paul (Neill), gather the family and loved ones together to discuss her options. But once together, opinions vary, especially those of Lily’s daughters, Jennifer (Winslet) and Anna (Wasikowska) and what was intended as a loving family gathering quickly shifts into a panoply of family dynamics.
September 22, 2020
Jay Sebring: Cutting to the Truth- VOD, Digital Platforms
JAY SEBRING: CUTTING TO THE TRUTH A fascinating, in-depth look at the legacy of revolutionary sixties Hollywood trendsetter Jay Sebring, JAY SEBRING….CUTTING TO THE TRUTH, a film by Anthony DiMaria, follows Sebring’s meteoric rise as a cultural icon and his untimely murder at the hands of the Manson family.
September 25, 2020
Reginald Denny Collection- Blu-ray, DVD
REGINALD DENNY COLLECTION In the romantic comedy The Reckless Age Denny plays an insurance agent who insinuates himself into the case of a wealthy heiress. In Skinner’s Dress Suit, directed by comedy ace William A. Seiter (Sons of the Desert), he is a shy clerk who asks his boss for a raise at the urging of his wife. His request is rejected, but he lies to his wife, who immediately goes out and buys an expensive suit, an act that upends his once-ordered life. And in What Happened to Jones?, also directed by Seiter, Denny plays a wealthy young bachelor on the night before his wedding. He is convinced to attend a poker party which is promptly raided, sending him on the run in a series of increasingly hilarious disguises.
The Artist’s Wife- VOD, Theaters
THE ARTIST’S WIFE Claire (Lena Olin) lives a domestic life in the Hamptons as the wife of celebrated artist Richard Smythson (Bruce Dern). Once a promising painter herself, Claire now lives in the shadow of her husband’s illustrious career. While preparing work for his final show, Richard’s moods become increasingly erratic, and he is diagnosed with dementia. As his memory and behavior deteriorate, she shields his condition from the art community while trying to reconnect him with his estranged daughter and grandson from a previous marriage
OCTOBER 2020
October 2, 2020
Save Yoursleves! – Platform TBD
SAVE YOURSELVES! ,Jack (John Reynolds) and Su (Sunita Mani) are a hip Brooklyn couple who, like many of their friends, find themselves dependent on technology and unable to put down their phones. Fearing their mindless scrolling may impact their connection with each other, they seize the chance to head to an isolated cabin in the woods, vowing to unplug from the outside world for a week. Sheltered from texts and push notifications, they are blissfully unaware that the planet is under attack. As strange events unfold, the couple must figure out a way back to civilization—or what’s left of it.
October 16, 2020
The Secrets We Keep- VOD (Select Theaters Sept 16)
THE SECRETS WE KEEP In post-WWII America, a woman (Rapace), rebuilding her life in the suburbs with her husband (Messina), kidnaps her neighbor (Kinnaman) and seeks vengeance for the heinous war crimes she believes he committed against her.
October 20, 2020
The Great- DVD
THE GREAT is a satirical, comedic drama—and occasionally true story—about the rise of Catherine the Great (Elle Fanning) from outsider to the longest reigning female ruler in Russia’s history. An idealistic romantic young girl, she arrives from Prussia for an arranged marriage to the mercurial Emperor Peter (Nicholas Hoult) hoping for love and sunshine, and finds instead a dangerous, depraved, backward world that she resolves to change. All she has to do is kill her husband, beat the church, baffle the military and get the court on her side.
The Mothman Legacy- Digital Screening Platforms
THE MOTHMAN LEGACY Many believe the Mothman to be a 1960’s phenomenon, an omen only appearing before tragedy, and disappearing after a flap of sightings and the subsequent Silver Bridge collapse in 1967. But what if there’s more? What if the origins of this omen trace back much further and go much deeper than anyone realized? And what if…the sightings never ended?
Writer, critic, film editor John Delia, Sr. has been on all sides of the movie business from publications to film making. He has worked as a film critic with ACED Magazine for more than 20 years and other publications for a total of 40 years. He earned a Bachelor’s degree in communications from the University of Florida. John is a member of the Southeastern Film Critics Association and Critics Association of Central Florida Send John a message at jdelia@acedmagazine.com
